Chained

It was on the first day of the end of his life he was forced to become a butler. He became a gift, just a present, just a thing that could be discarded easily, just like that, with a snap of fingers. He was going to get back on Lau for this, there was no way he'd let something like this just slide. Truth be told, he had been regretting dealing with that cursed Chinese ever since, it brought him little good and as he thought back, there really had been only a few times he found beneficial. And when that stupid job came around and he agreed to it… his career of an assassin went down the drain.

He even had to ask Lau to do him a favour. He could have as well gone and signed a contract with a devil. The outcome would be the same.

Sebastian Michaelis was displeased.

Nevertheless, no matter how much he disliked it, at the moment, he was standing beside a lady in a red dress and three dorky looking servants, wearing a stylish suit, and was waiting for his… young master to appear. The name of the kid was supposed to be Ciel Phantomhive and it was his seventeenth birthday. Also, strangely enough, the kid was an earl.

No. Sebastian couldn't say he was happy to be there. He had made some research on the name and found that the Phantomhives were the owners of a moderately famous toy-making company. Toys, as in, normal toys for kids. And although some of their toys were rather questionable, Sebastian couldn't see how he could possibly not die of boredom here. Babysitting someone who had already grown up enough not to need a babysitter. Or a butler for that matter.

Lau had said it was Baroness Dalles' idea, to get a butler for the young head and the only remaining member of the Phantomhive family, but Sebastian doubted that and wouldn't be surprised at all if it turned out it was Lau's doing in the first place. That would seem like him, that meddler.

The door opened and Sebastian straightened up, looking that way. A slender, not very tall young man of teal hair and pallid skin was standing there, his blue eyes grazing the scene before him, an unhappy expression on his face. Mrs. Dalles – Sebastian decided to nickname her Madame Red, since it was the only colour she was wearing – counted silently and on three, they all cheered: "Happy Birthday!" Sebastian didn't join the choir, though. He just watched the boy curl his think, pinkish lips a little.

"Aunt Anne. I believe I have said several times that I do not wish to celebrate my birthday." He stepped closer, arms folded on his chest.

"Aw, come on, Ciel, don't say that!" Madame Red waved her hand. "I got you a very special gift, you know!" Reaching for Sebastian, she pushed him forward. "See!"

"… Who is this supposed to be?" Ciel eyed Sebastian as though he had acknowledged his existence only then.

"A highly capable butler," Sebastian twitched, hearing it, "just for you to use!"

"Oh? I don't think I need one," Ciel's eyes were still glued to Sebastian's face. The so-said butler was making sure to remain completely stoic; there was no way he'd just let some brat read him.

"But! He can cook, he can clean, he's able to take care of the garden, he can help you with your studies and work and altogether is way more capable than this useless trio over here," she said bluntly, a smile curving her lips. Sebastian noticed that she'd entirely ignored how devastated the three servants were by her words. "Also," her eyes turned to Sebastian, "he can't refuse. He has to obey you, so if you accept him… Lau has assured me that this man is very loyal." There was something left unsaid behind these words, but Sebastian decided not to question it at the moment.

Ciel walked past the dining table on which cake and some small presents were, and stopped right in front of Sebastian. He had to look up to be able to look into the raven's eyes, but he did not seem to mind. "Lau again, huh. I wouldn't have expected that this day and age, I could get a personal slave as a birthday present," he said, a small smirk moving the left corner of his mouth slightly upwards.

"He…" Madame Red started, but raising his hand in a simple gesture, Ciel cut off whatever she was going to say. "What's your name, butler?"

Swallowing the retort that struggled to get out, Sebastian bowed his head. "Sebastian Michaelis, at your service."

"Very well then, Sebastian," Ciel said, turning away, "you may follow me. The rest of you, don't bother me today. Clean this stuff up, eat the cake and if there are any presents that you can't not give to me, leave them in my room somewhere."

"But, the birthday party—" Madame Red started, but Ciel shook his head. "There will be no party."

Completely content with the fact he didn't have to celebrate the birthday of a person whom he didn't know, Sebastian followed the boy, leaving the disappointed quartet behind.

Walking down the hallway, Sebastian about a step behind Ciel, the teal-haired young man was explaining all of Sebastian's duties. "I'm going to have you supervise the three idiots and entrust you with seeing to that they don't do too much damage. Finnian – the gardener – is stronger than he looks, but just as clumsy. Meirin, the maid, wears really strong glasses and becomes entirely useless when she loses them. It's happened a few times before and it is likely to happen again." Ciel paused in his speech, as he stopped in front of a door and waited. Realising quickly what that was supposed to mean, Sebastian opened the door for him and held it until the young master went through, then he followed. While he was doing that, countless curses surfaced his mind and he knew already he was going to hate every minute of this.

Sitting on a chair behind a table, Ciel continued. "Lastly, there's a chef whose only ability is to burn whatever he cooks. I'm sure he'd be able to burn tea water, but he's American, so no surprise there. His name is Bard. I'd like you to either teach him how to cook, or cook in his stead." Leaning his back into the armchair, he sighed. "Even though this all is just a big pretence game."

"Pardon?" Sebastian tilted his head.

"Well, the moment you dislike anything I do, you can just up and leave, right?" Ciel looked at him, a wry smile shortly appearing on his lips.

Sebastian shook his head. "Unfortunately, I cannot. Because of Lau, I'm afraid even if you walk all over me, I have to smile and bear it."

"Oh? That sounds shady." Ciel narrowed his eyes. "Don't tell me, you had some kind of a job, something illegal, and Lau covered for you. Now you owe him and so you are here." The boy stretched in the chair, like a cat, and watched Sebastian's stiff and expressionless face. "I'm just guessing, though." There was a smile, feigning innocence, and Sebastian clenched his teeth. He just wished he could tell this oh-so-smart kid to mind his own business and then slam the door while leaving.

"Well, aren't you sharp," he said instead. Considering this boy knew about what Lau does beneath the surface, there was no reason to hide the truth.

Ciel cleared his throat. "Every day, wake me up at half past six a. m. My breakfast, my clothes and my school bag have to be ready by then. Once I am ready to leave," the Earl opened a drawer, taking out some papers, "drive me to school. You do have a driving license, right?" he shot a look towards his new butler.

Sebastian nodded, then raised an eyebrow in surprise, noticing the boy silently exhaled in relief. Ciel handed him the papers, saying: "Here's my timetable and the address of the school. I have to be there at least fifteen minutes before the classes start. Oh yes, and you have to pick me up as well. In fact, I need you to be there. My classmates tend to be a bother and if you are there waiting, I can always say I have important matters to see to and use you as proof. That way, I won't be forced to spend time with them." Getting up, he walked over to one of the bookcases. "How good is your ability to keep secrets?"

And Sebastian – he finally understood what Ciel meant by playing pretend. "However good my Lord needs it to be," he bowed deeply, not a hint of irony in the sentence. Always faithful to his job, he meant every single word he had said.

"The serious type, eh," Ciel nodded, as though he was answering a question he asked himself before. "Sometimes, I go out at night, and I don't want you to follow me. Or, if you feel like you have to, keep your distance so that I don't notice your presence. It would bother me. Get it?"

"… Understood," Sebastian chose the simplest response; he was not supposed to question what Ciel did.

"As for the rest of the day, you are to help me with whatever you deem necessary. I know you are going to have a tight schedule and I won't require you by my side at all times. There, however, are going to be days I'll need you to be there as my escort, and…" Ciel eyed him, "a bodyguard."

Sebastian nodded again, remaining quiet. Silence fell on the room, and Ciel took one of the books and walked back to his chair. He opened it, but closed it again and looked at Sebastian. "So," he said, "what was the reason Lau had to cover for you?"

The butler shook his head. "A part of my agreement with him is that I am not to tell you that. I apologise."

"Aren't you supposed to obey each and every of my demands?" Ciel's eyebrow cocked a little.

"Of course, if you ordered me to tell you, I wouldn't say no, but… pardon my straightforwardness, my Lord, but it is in your best interest not to know." Sebastian, bowing his head, added: "Could you please not order me to tell you that?"

Ciel gave him a long, questioning stare, but then he shrugged his shoulders, returning to the book. "Very well." After a moment, he looked up. "You're still here?" he narrowed his eyes.

Sebastian bowed slightly, hiding his unhappy expression that way. "My apologies. I was under the impression my Lord would expressly tell me to leave, shall he no longer require my presence."

Ciel's lips curved into a small smirk. "You really have gotten the hang of it quickly," he said and Sebastian was unsure whether it was sarcasm or not. "Do your job, then. I would recommend to start with the kitchen," the earl said, shooting a brief glance to the clock that was on the wall. "It's about time for Bard to prepare lunch."

Sebastian bowed again ad wordlessly, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

o*o*o*o

"Did you call for me, my Lord?" Sebastian entered Ciel's study after knocking and getting the young earl's approval.

"Ah, yes. Is everything going smoothly? I haven't seen you since lunch, so I was wondering." Ciel set his book down calmly. He seemed to read a lot; that was unusual for a person his age, or so Sebastian thought.

"Did you call me here only for that?" the butler asked, but immediately continued. "I think I'm coping with my new role well," he said, his reddish orbs focusing on the earl's profile.

"That's good, then," Ciel said and got up. "But no, the reason I called you in here… I'm going out. I want you to prepare me some clothes. Nothing too flashy, just something appropriate for a midnight stroll. I will be returning around four in the morning."

"Do you want me to let the other servants know?" Sebastian said, his voice monotone and showing the biggest amount of disinterest he was able to put into it.

"No, I would prefer if nobody knew about it," Ciel said thoughtfully. "And as I've said before, whether you follow me or not…" he sighed. "Do as you see fit. However, if I notice you following me, I'll order you to stay here next time I go out. Is that clear?"

"Yes," the raven nodded simply. A while ago, he began wondering what exactly was behind those night strolls, and all he could come up with was that Ciel had a woman he would regularly visit – or he might simply want to have fun like the other youngsters do, drinking and dancing and… stuff. Sebastian, whose only purpose in life used to be to kill those whom he had on his order list, then get money from said killing and afterwards buy better equipment to carry out assassinations more smoothly, then begin the cycle all over again, had no idea what kind of fun could people possibly have behaving in a group like a bunch of idiots. Nonetheless, he would respect it, if anyone wanted to do so.

"Good." Ciel turned away. "Do as I told you. I'm leaving in half an hour."

Sebastian bowed his head and leaving the study, he want to Ciel's room to pick said clothes. He did check the whole house and went to each and every single one of the rooms, trying to memorise it as quickly as possible, and he recognised Ciel's room without having to ask about it. Though the Phantomhive house was huge, it was not chaotic and he soon knew everything about it – he even found a secret passage in Ciel's bedroom. There were several more, and the former assassin struggled hard not to call them escape corridors. It was unlikely the boy wouldn't know about them, and Sebastian assumed that if Ciel was going to leave unnoticed, it had to be through one of these. Of course, he went through each and every of them, and found the exits. It was highly unlikely Ciel would go out using a different passage than the one in his bedroom, considering it was where he would change. Not to mention, the servants, as Sebastian discovered, were forbidden to enter Ciel's room once he declared he was going to bed, and they couldn't enter until it was time for him to get up. This piece of information was interesting, albeit no such ban had gotten to Sebastian's ears, meaning it probably didn't concern Sebastian himself.

The butler, because that was what he had become, did as he was told, preparing a pair of trousers and a simple shirt for the earl, both of dark shades of blue. The nights were cold around this time of the year, so he added a black sweatshirt and a grey jacket, plus a pair of gloves. After thinking about it for a moment, he added a scarf as well. As for shoes, he was sure the earl was going to decide for himself, so he set everything on the bed neatly, then left the room, nearly running into Ciel, who was just about to enter. "It's ready," he said silently, stepping out of the way and bowing. Ciel nodded and entered the room without a single word. The door clicked behind him.

Turning away, Sebastian walked quickly into the room that Ciel decided would be for his butler only. He changed hastily and shoving a knife into his pocket and a gun and a separate silencer into another, he left the room, locking it, and he went to hide near the exit of the passage he thought Ciel would be using.

Several minutes passed and he was already starting to think that he might've guessed wrong, that Ciel was already gone and he was waiting there while the earl was somewhere having fun, but then, rustling came from underneath him. He was sitting in a fir tree, motionless, and couldn't be possibly noticed from down there, and he let out a silent relieved sigh when he saw the bushes moving and Ciel crawling from underneath them, wearing the attire Sebastian had chosen for him.

He looked around in the snow, not seeing any other footprints than his own, and he nodded, satisfied to see that he was alone there and nobody was following him. Of course, he had no idea Sebastian didn't just walk there, that would be a stupid thing to do and Sebastian had little interest in amateurism, of course; watching Ciel slowly walk away, the butler smiled to himself and climbed back on the balcony he used to get onto the fir tree. The earl didn't turn back once, and therefore Sebastian climbed down the wall about twenty yards away from the passage safely, unnoticed, and followed the boy, hiding in the shades.

The moment Ciel was a little further from his home, he stopped particularly trying to walk stealthily, entering the dim-lit streets. The Phantomhive mansion was on the very edge of town, so everything was pretty far from there. Ciel, however, was walking slowly, as if there was no need to hurry. Sebastian caught up to him quickly and was just a few steps from him whilst the earl didn't seem to notice him. Suddenly, though, the young man stopped and pulled out a phone, and Sebastian quickly ducked behind a few trash bins to remain hidden.

Ciel was calling for a cab.

That wasn't good.

But…

It was not anything Sebastian couldn't deal with.